NFL: Dolphins' first-round pick Dion Jordan finally in spotlight

DAVIE — Miami Dolphins defensive end Dion Jordan, the first-round pick from Oregon, has a world of expectations on his shoulders. But you’d never know by talking to him.

Jordan (6 feet 7, 250 pounds), who was born in San Francisco and reared in Phoenix, has a bit of that West Coast/desert cool going for him. He doesn’t allow the huge expectations to weigh him down.

His demeanor was on public display Saturday at the Dolphins’ facility when Jordan met with the media, and he was enjoying being the center of attention.

“It’s different, man; honestly, it’s different,” he said of the interest. “At the University of Oregon the defensive players don’t get much love.”

Oregon, of course, was known for its high-powered and creative offense under coach Chip Kelly, who is now Philadelphia’s head coach. Defense existed only out of necessity.

“Somebody had to run on the field after they scored in four or five plays,” Jordan quipped.

That’s not the case with the Dolphins. Miami, which is badly in need of play-makers, is about to make Jordan a defensive focal point, and he loves it. The plan is for him to play on the right side, opposite Pro Bowl defensive end Cam Wake.

Jordan will have to be a hand-in-the-dirt pass rusher, a guy who can “set the edge” against the run, someone who can drop into pass coverage, and he needs to cause fumbles, recover fumbles and get an interception or two.

These are the elements Miami has been missing from its defense, and General Manager Jeff Ireland thinks they have that and more in Jordan.

“He’s one of those guys that’s hard to knock off his feet,” Ireland said. “He can bend the corner. He can cover tight ends down the seam. He just has an array of skills that translates in the National Football League.”

Jordan was a wide receiver, and then a tight end, at Oregon before switching to linebacker in 2010 as a redshirt sophomore. He found his true joy was creating havoc for offensive players.

“I feel like when I first got moved to the defensive side of the ball, I found my niche,” he said. “I realized that me getting after the quarterbacks and chasing down the football was big.”

Jordan was incredibly successful at his craft, although the numbers aren’t eye-popping. As a senior last year, he amassed five sacks, three forced fumbles and one interception. As a junior, playing a combination linebacker/defensive end position, he had 7.5 sacks and first showed he could be disruptive The Dolphins need that to continue.

“Certainly that is one of the things, if he can apply pressure to the quarterback on a consistent basis, hopefully knock the ball loose a couple of times and have us recover it, that’s a positive,” coach Joe Philbin said.

Jordan’s narrow frame combined with his un-NFL-like height have drawn inevitable comparisons to Jason Taylor, perhaps the best pass rusher in Dolphins history.

“I’ve heard them,” Jordan said of the Taylor comparisons. “It’s great. Somebody of his caliber, who came to the organization and produced the way he did, is good.”

The Dolphins know they want Jordan to be a key player as a rookie, but they haven’t yet worked out specifics.

“We’ve got a great vision for him,” Ireland said. “Part of that’s going to be rushing the passer, but the other part is up to him (Philbin).”

Miami’s challenge will be devising a scheme that allows Jordan to use his speed and agility to get around beefy left tackles. At Oregon, he was a standup linebacker. It’s unclear if Miami will force him to keep a hand in the dirt all the time or if they’ll allow him to stand up sometimes and maybe even change sides.

Whatever the case, Jordan said he’s qualified.

“I feel like I’m a football player,” he said. “Wherever they want to go, whatever they want me to do, I’m going to be open to it, I’m going to listen, I’m going to learn, I’m going to do whatever I have to do to help this team.”